One skillet dinners make weeknight dinner time a breeze! Chicken orzo pasta bake is made with a creamy Parmesan orzo with peas and cooks up in a cast iron or oven safe skillet.
Not only does a skillet chicken orzo bake make the cooking process easy, it also makes the cleanup process so much faster. The orzo toasts in the skillet so you don’t even need a separate pot to boil the pasta in!
You can either use a cast iron skillet like I did, or an oven safe skillet will work too. You just want to make sure it’s large enough because you’ll be adding nearly 3 cups of liquid plus the orzo plus the chicken thighs so it will be pretty fully.
I like to place the skillet on a large baking sheet to make transferring it in and out of the oven easier with less chance of spilling.
HOW TO COOK SKILLET CHICKEN THIGHS
This recipes cooks the chicken thighs in two steps.
- Remove any excess fat then season with the garlic powder, onion powder, chicken bouillon, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Coat both sides of the chicken with some all purpose flour. Coating in flour helps prevent the chicken from sticking to the pan, and also helps seal in the seasonings while giving it an added bit of texture and browning.
- Cook in the butter/oil mixture over medium heat for 3 minutes, then flip and cook for 3 minutes more. The chicken is not fully cooked at this point, but it will finish off in the oven at the end of the recipe!
- After you’ve got the orzo, broth, and cream cooking in the skillet, add the chicken thighs back and cook in the oven at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
As I always recommend with my chicken dinner recipes, get yourself a digital meat thermometer. For chicken you want to reach at least 165 degrees, but this recipe you’ll get slightly higher around 170 degrees which can be optimal for getting nice and tender chicken thighs.
If you’ve never toasted orzo before cooking it boy are you going to love this recipe! It gives the pasta so much extra depth of flavor you’re going to want to cook all your orzo dishes like this! All you need to do is add a little butter to the skillet, coat all the orzo in the melted butter, then cook over medium heat for 4 minutes. Such an easy step in the process but adds an elevated taste!
STORAGE AND REHEATING
Keep any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days for best freshness. To reheat, I like to cut the chicken up into smaller pieces so it reheats faster without drying out.
Reheat on the stove or in the microwave, you can add a bit more broth and cheese to bring back some of the creamy texture.
For more chicken dinner inspiration, you might like some of these recipes!
Jalapeno popper chicken
Pesto chicken parm
Easy baked BBQ chicken
And to use up extra orzo, try this comforting soup!
Creamy lemon chicken orzo soup
PrintChicken Orzo Pasta Bake
Chicken orzo pasta bake is a one skillet dinner that’s loaded with peas, Parmesan cheese, garlic, and a bit of light cream.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Saute
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 and 1/4 cups dry orzo
2 and 1/4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup light cream
1/2 cup cooked peas (I used frozen peas and cooked them in the microwave)
4 cloves of garlic, grated
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons of butter + 1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
1. Combine the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, and chicken bouillon then season the chicken thighs. Pour the flour over the chicken to make sure each side is well coated.
2. To a cast iron or oven safe skillet, add the 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Heat over medium heat then add the chicken. Cook for 3 minutes, then flip and cook for 3 more minutes then remove to a plate and cover with foil for later. At this time preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
3. Add a bit more butter to the skillet (1/2 of a tablespoon or less, not too much or the final baked dish will be too oily) and melt. Pour in the orzo and stir so it’s well coated in the butter. Cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally allowing the pasta to get browned and toasted. After 4 minutes, add the grated garlic and stir to incorporate it into the orzo and cook for 30 more seconds.
4. Pour in the broth (carefully as it will sizzle and splatter from the hot skillet), then the cream, Parmesan, and peas. Stir to combine then add back the chicken pieces.
5. Allow the liquid to come to a light simmering boil then turn off the heat. If your skillet is very full you can place it on a large baking sheet to make transferring it to the oven easier.
6. Place the skillet in the oven and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Chicken should be at least 165 degrees at this time.
7. Remove from the oven and allow to rest 5 minutes before serving. There will be excess liquid when you first take it out of the oven, but it will absorb and settle as it rests.
Serve and enjoy every bite!
Leave a Reply